EN: Withouthim, we wouldnever have gone on a journeywithHarryPotter, Ron andHermione.BarryCunninghamdiscoveredJ.K. Rowling'snovelin 1997 andcontracted her for the publishing houseBloomsbury. He particularlypromotesyoungunknown authors and already worked with Kerstin Gier,Cornelia Funkeand KevinBrooks. In 2000 he foundedhis own publishing company "The ChickenHouse".

I metBarryCunninghamat the LeipzigBook Fairand we talked about his workas a publisher,the discoveryofJ.K.Rowlingand hisnext big project.

Did you already have time to visit the book fair?

Yes, I have been around it. But I came two years ago
as well and I love it. Everyone gets dressed up. I like this kind of
celebrating books. In many book fairs in other countries they don´t have such
an open policy of letting readers in. It is great.

How did you become a publisher?

It was an accident. I started out in marketing and
publicity and I became fascinated in the way children relate to authors and
their work. Books are like secret friends of childhood and children are the most adventurous readers. They
follow you through the back of the wardrobe or to strange land as long as it
makes sense. They are much less conservative. They won´t read the books they
are supposed to read. They do not care about reviews. Children, who haven´t got
much money and children who are very rich, can like the same thing. It is a
very pure market, so I was inspired to work in children´s books.

What do you like most about your Job?

I like reader’s reactions. I am more interested in
readers than authors. I think authors are great, but their work does not have
any life unless readers like it. I love it when you got a book that readers
talk about and pass on to each other. It is the best thing.

What does your daily routine look like?

I don´t have a daily routine. I never get tired of
reading books and I get a lot of manuscripts to read. I always think the next
one could be really special. I have a great life, because I do not have a
course.

What makes out a good script?

I think getting the voice right. A voice, that is like
an authentic voice of childhood within the story.

When you read the first Harry Potter book, what was the thing that
convinced you? At least the script was declined by lots of publishers before.

I loved the humor, because in those days fantasy was
not funny. I liked the owls in Hogwarts. But it really was the friendship
between the three main characters that make me buy it. I loved the way they
supported each other.

But there is
this famous anecdote about you telling J.K. Rowling, that the book will never
be successful.

I said I was worried about that. I choose a
single mother and she did not have much money. So I said to her she should get
a day job, because she will never earn any money with children’s books. I did
not think she would end up as one of the richest women in the world (laughs).

What are your tips or advices for young prospective writers?

Young authors should find what they really care about.
They should look for the thing that makes them most angry or unhappy, because
that is the heart in books that makes them worth reading.

Have you ever thought about writing your own book?

No, I can´t. I have so many voices of other people in
my head, I could just write an imitation.

What book are your reading at the Moment?

I am reading a wonderful new book called “The Beetle
Boy” by M.G. Leonard, which is a manuscript that we will be publishing next
year. And I am reading the third draft, which is finally finished working. I am
very excited about it.